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Lot 140 |Provenant de l'entourage de l'artiste
Aristide Maillol (1861-1944)
Dina de face, étude pour "Harmonie"
Closed23 March 2017
Price Realised
EUR 98,500
More Information
Aristide Maillol (1861-1944)
Dina de face, étude pour "Harmonie"
signé et dédicacé 'Pour Monsieur et Madame Massot Maillol' (en bas à droite)
pierre noire et craie blanche sur papiers joints
101.8 x 66.9 cm.
Exécuté en février 1940
signed and dedicated 'Pour Monsieur et Madame Massot Maillol' (lower right)
black chalk and white chalk on joined paper
40 1/8 x 26 3/8 in.
Executed in February 1940
Dina de face, étude pour "Harmonie"
signé et dédicacé 'Pour Monsieur et Madame Massot Maillol' (en bas à droite)
pierre noire et craie blanche sur papiers joints
101.8 x 66.9 cm.
Exécuté en février 1940
signed and dedicated 'Pour Monsieur et Madame Massot Maillol' (lower right)
black chalk and white chalk on joined paper
40 1/8 x 26 3/8 in.
Executed in February 1940
Aristide Maillol (1861-1944)
Dina de face, étude pour "Harmonie"
signé et dédicacé 'Pour Monsieur et Madame Massot Maillol' (en bas à droite)
pierre noire et craie blanche sur papiers joints
101.8 x 66.9 cm.
Exécuté en février 1940
signed and dedicated 'Pour Monsieur et Madame Massot Maillol' (lower right)
black chalk and white chalk on joined paper
40 1/8 x 26 3/8 in.
Executed in February 1940
Dina de face, étude pour "Harmonie"
signé et dédicacé 'Pour Monsieur et Madame Massot Maillol' (en bas à droite)
pierre noire et craie blanche sur papiers joints
101.8 x 66.9 cm.
Exécuté en février 1940
signed and dedicated 'Pour Monsieur et Madame Massot Maillol' (lower right)
black chalk and white chalk on joined paper
40 1/8 x 26 3/8 in.
Executed in February 1940
Don de l'artiste à la famille du propriétaire actuel, en 1940.
En 1934, quelques années avant qu’Aristide Maillol ne se retire définitivement à Banyuls-sur-mer, il fait la rencontre d’une jeune fille d’une quinzaine d’années par l’intermédiaire de l’architecte Dondel. A cette époque, le sculpteur en quête de perfection souffre pourtant d’un manque d’inspiration, lui qui, selon ses propres mots, aspire à «sculpter l’impalpable». Cette adolescente, c’est Dina Vierny, qui deviendra son modèle en même temps que sa muse les dix dernières années de sa vie. La sensualité généreuse de cette presque femme en fait rapidement pour l’artiste un parangon de la féminité. Elle va jusqu’à se métamorphoser en allégorie de la Nature aux yeux du vieil homme, puisqu’elle est tour à tour La Rivière, L’Air, La Montagne ou encore L’Harmonie. Le présent dessin constitue une esquisse de cette dernière œuvre, et fut offert par Maillol aux parents de l’actuel propriétaire à l’occasion de leurs fiançailles, alors que l’artiste entretenait de véritables liens d’amitié avec les grands-parents, amateurs d’art habitant le même village du sud de la France. S’il s’agit d’une étude préparatoire, cette feuille très aboutie laisse pourtant deviner les volumes de la sculpture finale, et représente déjà en soi un hommage au corps féminin. La relation entre l’artiste et sa muse fut régulièrement comparée au mythe de Pygmalion - l’élan amoureux toutefois mis à l’écart. L’on comprend alors aisément comment la recherche de perfection du sculpteur aboutit à ce corps harmonieux, aux proportions parfaites, ou l’on entraperçoit déjà la facture lisse de l’œuvre finale.
In 1934, a few years before Aristide Maillol finally retired to Banyuls-surmer, he made the acquaintance of a fifteen-year old girl through the architect Dondel. At that time, the sculptor in search of perfection was nonetheless suffering from a lack of inspiration, he who, in his own words, aspired to “sculpt the intangible”. This teenage girl was Dina Vierny, who would become both his model and his muse for the last ten years of his life. The generous
sensuality of this girl on the verge of womanhood soon made her, for the artist, a paragon of femininity. In the old man’s eyes she even metamorphosed into an allegory of Nature, since she was in turn La Riviere, L’Air, La Montagne and L’Harmonie too. This drawing is a sketch for the last of these works and was given by Maillol to the parents of the present owner as an engagement gift, as the artist was a close friend of the owner’s grandparents, art lovers living in the same Southern village. Although a preparatory study, this large work allows one to guess the volumes of the final sculpture, and in itself already represents an appreciation of the female body. The relationship between the artist and his muse has been regularly compared to the myth of Pygmalion – with the rush of love, however, put aside. So it is easy to understand how the sculptor’s search for perfection led to this harmonious body, with perfect proportions, in which there is already a glimpse of the fluid workmanship of the final work.
In 1934, a few years before Aristide Maillol finally retired to Banyuls-surmer, he made the acquaintance of a fifteen-year old girl through the architect Dondel. At that time, the sculptor in search of perfection was nonetheless suffering from a lack of inspiration, he who, in his own words, aspired to “sculpt the intangible”. This teenage girl was Dina Vierny, who would become both his model and his muse for the last ten years of his life. The generous
sensuality of this girl on the verge of womanhood soon made her, for the artist, a paragon of femininity. In the old man’s eyes she even metamorphosed into an allegory of Nature, since she was in turn La Riviere, L’Air, La Montagne and L’Harmonie too. This drawing is a sketch for the last of these works and was given by Maillol to the parents of the present owner as an engagement gift, as the artist was a close friend of the owner’s grandparents, art lovers living in the same Southern village. Although a preparatory study, this large work allows one to guess the volumes of the final sculpture, and in itself already represents an appreciation of the female body. The relationship between the artist and his muse has been regularly compared to the myth of Pygmalion – with the rush of love, however, put aside. So it is easy to understand how the sculptor’s search for perfection led to this harmonious body, with perfect proportions, in which there is already a glimpse of the fluid workmanship of the final work.
Specialist note
Dina Verny a confirmé l’authenticité de cette œuvre en 2005.